Fancy Fonts and Coordinated Colors

The best thing about planning a Bat Mitzvah for 2008 is how far technology has come since 2005.

My favorite thing to do, when I indulge myself, is to look at invitations, plan the wording (since that's my thing), and play with fonts and colors. To me it's like an amusement park for my imagination...I just get on the ride and the fun begins!

The best website I've found is Einvites, which is listed in the sidebar. On that site, of which I have no vested interest, just an obsessive one, you can choose an invitation and customize it to look just like you would want it to with wording, fonts and colors. It's not the same as holding an invitation in your hand, so I do recommend going to a invitation dealer at your Temple or in your community so you can see and feel them in person. But this will give you an idea of how your wording will look, how your and your child's name will look in the font you've chosen and the feeling you want to evoke when someone pulls it out of the envelope.

Don't get overwhelmed, there are hundreds of font and color options. Decide if you want plain or fancy, script or block, black or bright. Play with a few and then focus on your child's name when choosing lettering. For me, I make sure that my daughter's initials in any font are what I'm looking for. You can change the fonts easily and go back and forth. Invitations set a tone and send a message. It doesn't matter how much they cost, but a pink polka-dot invitation with bubbly letter says cutesy and fun while a muted pink invitation with a script font says something else.

I've done this ad nauseum, folks. Now I only hope that when time comes, I can get C on board, because I'm quite sure she has some preteen ideas of her own...and I'm sensing those might have a little glitter on them.

Getting Up To Speed

It's not news that Bar and Bat Mitzvahs can get out of hand. Entrances on elephants, orchestras, meals worth hundreds of dollars per person, in my opinion, starts to outweigh the meaning and purpose.

This is a religious rite of passage for our children. Children.

Nonetheless, the big stuff is what gets all the attention and even accolades from some. I've read that even some gentile families put on extravagant faux mitzvahs so their own children aren't left out of the whopper celebrations at age 13. And I'm all about a party, don't get me wrong. I want the linens to match the balloons and the food and drink to flow freely, within the limits of my budget.

I'm not trying to impress anyone, although I don't want anyone to walk away hungry. I'm not trying to make a financial statement, although a fashion statement in terms of me being able to plan a well-run and kick-a$$ party for kids and adults and not look like something the cat dragged in in the process is OK with me too.

So the plan right now is just gather ideas and keep track of all monies spent. The caterer and the DJ have whopper deposits. We've chosen the theme and I'm regularly scoping out ways to make the theme permeate the entire evening party without getting too out of hand with the out of pocket.

Over the next year I have to coordinate a Friday night dinner for out-of-towners, the Oneg at Temple, a Saturday lunch for the same out-of-towners, the Saturday night party, a Sunday brunch, and because it's Memorial Day weekend - a Sunday night dinner if anyone is sticking around.

Add that to the studying, shopping and decision making and it's fun, but cumbersome when there is also actual life to live, work to do, a new career to launch and laundry to fold.

Wondering how it will all get done? Me too, so stay tuned.

You Are Cordially Invited

Stereotypes abound when it comes to the Bar and Bat Mitzvah hoopla, but the fact is, there's some truth, for some people, to much of it. I thought this invitation wording said it best!

In keeping up with the Rosen's and the Abelson's,

It is with great stress, emotional and physical fatigue,
and incredible financial sacrifice beyond comprehension,

that we invite you to join us as our wonderful son

Jacob Adam

is called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah.

Saturday, May 12th (yes, we realize it's Mother's Day Weekend)

Temple Israel

14 Coleytown Road

Westport, Connecticut 06880

at the ungodly hour of 9:00am

even though you don't really need to be there until 10:20am to catch the real action.

If you make it through the three hour service, please skip the kiddush

(its just cookies and cake)

and join us instead for an overly large and ostentatious evening meal,

which starts at 7:00pm.

(not 8:00pm, or you will miss out on all the appetizers).

Birchwood Country Club 25 Kings Hwy S. Westport, CT 06880

(which we had to join just for this event and you would not believe the initiation fees)

You will be in the presence of lots of boisterous and expensive entertainment and 60 to 70 unruly pre-teens wearing expensive dresses, funny hats, fake bling and brand new white ankle socks... as well as 80-100 middle aged+ adults, some balding, some with bad toupees. Most will be professionally coiffed, designer attire galore, lots of REAL bling, and "tootsed" to the nines. At least 1/3 will be hormonally challenged and some will act stupid while under the influence. Some will not even know where or who they are. Some will complain about the food. Blah Blah Blah.

Please have the courtesy of showing up if you RSVP that you are attending, or you will be billed $210.00 a plate if you are a no-show. Please RSVP as soon as you get this and not the day before the cut-off date. I can't take the stress.

The gift of choice is either green, or contains a routing and account number. "Off the top of your head" gifts and Gift Cards are a waste of your time and ours.

Hope you can make it!

Lisa and David Jones

If you want some real-life suggestions for invitation wording, use the VerseIt link in the sidebar.

Welcome to The Bat Mitzvah Blog

I can't take credit for this idea, or even the tag line, although I'd love to. A while back I came across a blog that chronicled the planning of a Bar Mitzvah. Well, it chronicled it for a week or two and then *POOF* it went the way of many good blogs, to Blog Heaven. But right there and then I realized that this is the perfect venue for obsessing and planning, since no one is as interested in the planning of C's Bat Mitzvah as I am.

Perhaps it will serve simply as my own personal amusement. And if that's the case, it may go a long way in helping me maintain my sanity for the next 14 months.

And, if anyone else gets ideas or help from the links or ideas posted here, all the better!